Cancellara joins Schlecks

Paris - Four-times world time trial champion Fabian Cancellara has joined the Schleck brothers' team on a three-year deal, the Luxembourg Pro Cycling Project said on Tuesday.

"The Luxembourg Pro Cycling Project is thrilled to announce that it has signed Fabian Cancellara to a contract that will see the Swiss powerhouse riding for the team for the next three years," the team, which is set to hit the road next year, said in a statement.

Swiss Cancellara, who achieved a rare Tour of Flanders Paris-Roubaix classics double this year, is joining from Bjarne Riis's Saxo Bank team.

Tour de France runner-up Andy Schleck and his brother Frank also left Saxo Bank at the end of the season to launch their own team and have attracted several team mates to Luxembourg.

The Luxembourg Pro Cycling Project is managed by Brian Nygaard, a former media officer at Saxo Bank and Team Sky.

Riis has signed three-times Tour de France champion Alberto Contador, who failed a drugs test for the banned anabolic agent clenbuterol in July.

The Spaniard has been provisionally suspended until the International Cyling Union (UCI) and the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) finish an investigation.

Saxo Bank, however, have pledged support to Riis, even if Contador is suspended.